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T E C H N O L O G Y | D E S I G N | A P P L I C A T I O N S | S O L U T I O N S
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Lessons from the Road
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Goodbye Yellow Brick Road...
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We Will Miss the Renaissance Man!
by Wayne Ulanski, President - but Brother First - [email protected]
My customary "Vision Critical" Article takes second stage this month - With this issue of FlowRate we bid a fond adieu to our friend, colleague and my brother, Gary Ulanowski.
Yes, we really are brothers but Gary spells his last name differently - leave it to him to be unique!
Gary has been our resident Renaissance Man for more than 7 years when he joined us to first manage our website. Along the way he has contributed in so many areas using his vast array of talents. You have, of course, enjoyed the monthly issues of FlowRate which includes his humor, his cooking skills and his graphic art skills.
During the recent move to our new headquarters he served as our General Contractor and provided CAD drawings to help us analyze our floor planning while working closely with all of the contractors. He also did some of the work-hanging doors and locks, signs a clocks - (rhyme intended) to help move the project along and to an "on-time" completion.
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Our facility is adorned with architectural details that make it a great place to work and reflect an artistic refinement that can only come from his "Da Vinci-like" eye for design.
And he did all of this while restoring his 1974 VW Bus which has become a popular exhibit at the local VW shows.
You have all been touched - somehow - by the Newsletters that Gary has artfully crafted over the years and added his personal touch to them with his wit, "east coast" humor, his Head Scratcher Column and, of course, his Recipe of the Month. But many of you wouldn't know him if you passed him on the street, so I have compiled some pictures of Gary below with our Mom, with me, his beloved VW Bus, with David Steel & David's wife Leah and a group shot taken recently.
Gary is also a music lover and a big fan of Elton John. He now likens the next chapter of his journey to the song "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road"
"You can't plant me in your penthouse... I'm going back to my plow.
Back to the howling old owl in the woods, hunting the horny-back toad.
Oh, I've finally decided my future lies, beyond the Yellow Brick Road!"
P.S...
Thankfully, Gary has agreed to remain the editor-in-chief for our Newsletter so you will have ample opportunities to enjoy his work and witticisms.
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Mom & Gary
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Cool Dudes
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His VW Bus
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Leah, Gary and David
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Da Bro's
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Gary, Leah, David, Jennifer, Wayne
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Our Family, circa 1964
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Basic Planning and HOW!
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Strategic planning has a basic overall framework.
Not to oversimplify the strategic planning process, but by placing all the parts of a plan into the following three areas, you can clearly see how the pieces of your plan fit together:
- Where are we now? Review your current strategic position and clarify your mission, vision, and values.
- Where are we going? Establish your competitive advantage and your vision. Clearly see the direction your organization is headed.
- HOW will we get there? Lay out the road to connect where you are now to where you're going. Set your strategic objectives, goals, and action items and HOW you'll execute your plan.
This article is about the need to discuss and document HOW you will achieve your ambitious goals.
By developing a list of "HOW" you can better determine the exact steps required to understand and influence the stakeholders of your plan. For instance:
- Encourage your key people to interact with your customers about their perception of your future and bring those views to the planning table.
- Develop a profile of your target account and then decide if that account can reach the potential you have assigned to it. If so, HOW? Here are some examples:
- Does their business plan align with yours?
- Do they have the skills to ensure success?
- Are they willing to invest "windshield time"?
- Will their management be driving the plan with you?
- Document the exact requirements you have in order to propose a plan for success. Then write down how you will accomplish them.
- Implementation is the phase that turns strategies and plans into actions in order to accomplish strategic objectives and goals. The critical actions move a strategic plan from a document that sits on the shelf to actions that drive business growth.
- The plan must clearly articulate goals, action steps, responsibilities, accountabilities, and specific deadlines. And everyone must understand the plan and his individual role in it.
- Before closing the strategic planning session, clearly explain what comes next and who's responsible for what. When you walk out of the room, everyone must fully understand what he's responsible for and be clear about the deadlines for each action.
- Focus on accountability for results and have clear and compelling consequences for unapproved missed deadlines.
Sports is always a great metaphor for planning. Here's how a football strategy might be described:
- Where are we now? On the 20 yard line
- Where are we going? To the End Zone
- HOW will we get there? We will use one of the plays which we have practiced to give us the best shot of scoring on this opponent.
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Increasing Employee Involvement in Continuous Improvement Programs
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by Jane Lovett, Quality Manager - [email protected]
Throughout my career and based on my experience, creating a culture of continuous improvement is not an overnight process. It takes positive leadership from senior management, support from middle management, buy-in from employees, measurements to track progress, and major teamwork. At SVF, we are instituting a few programs that will support our ongoing continuous improvement efforts.
Firstly, an
Employee Suggestion Program
will be implemented on April 1st.
The goal of this program is to assure that two-way communication takes place, whereby all employees will have the chance to provide meaningful and cost beneficial suggestions for improvement. These suggestions will be reviewed by management for next steps and communication of those next steps will be relayed to all employees.
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This Employee Suggestion Program will work best if the following points are followed:
- Designate an individual who will be responsible for providing immediate feedback to the employee who submitted a suggestion, even if that means a, "Thank you for your submission. We will review and let you know how we might be able to make improvements." This goes a long way in making an employee feel like their opinion is valued.
- All entries are received and followed up on.
- Make sure to provide feedback on suggestions to employees. For example, you can take 5 minutes weekly during a shift start meeting to read out suggestions that are being considered, and recognize the employee who submitted them.
- If a suggestion is not considered, it is important to communicate back to the employee why it is not being implemented. This is the only way for an employee to learn what suggestions may or may not work.
I have also learned that positive reinforcement rules the day. So, we are also going to add another component by implementing an "Above and Beyond!" program. The idea is to reward employees for going above and beyond the call of duty with safety, quality, teamwork, or any aspect of their work. I look forward to these positive changes and adding to our culture of continuous improvement.
Source: A section of this article was sourced by Ryder.com
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A Belly-Warming Soup Recipe to Get You Through the Winter!
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A number of years ago I posted this recipe and had so many positive comments that I thought I would share it with you again - and since a good part of the country is still in the grasp of winter... Brrrr!
Thank you all for your feedback!
If you can get through the preparation part of this, you're well on your way to a quick, belly-warming meal!
You will need just a bit of patience and maybe a quick trip to the store to buy one (just one) ingredient. The rest of it you probably have in your kitchen right this moment!
Believe me, you will not be disappointed (and you will get to experience what being a great cook is all about).
Click here to view and download the complete directions!
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Intrinsically Safe...
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NEXTEK Controls includes a range of automation accessories for Intrinsically Safe systems.
Limit switch, pilot valves, our award winning NEXUS-LP and NEXUS-LPX packages and positioners are all available to suit Intrinsically Safe connectivity.
The new VECTOR-PV9 Pilot Valve features a low wattage coil, <1W, which is also used in the NEXUS-LP product.
Stay tuned for our new brochure detailing our IntrinsicallySafe product family.
What does Intrinsically Safe mean?
A device termed "intrinsically safe" is engineered, designed and most importantly certified to be incapable of producing heat or spark sufficient to ignite and explosive atmosphere, regardless of the source: flammable gasses, vapors, or combustible dusts or fibers. Such a design is not explosion proof, nor does it need to be. In many cases, intrinsically safe sensors employ so-called "barriers" that reside outside of the hazardous area and serve to limit the amount of energy available to the sensor.
Simple Apparatus
such as LEDs and switches may be employed in a hazardous area without IS certification provided that it does not generate or store more than 1.2V, 0.1A and 25mW.
Simple Apparatus is defined as a device that does not generate or store energy.
From this definition it is clear that all switches manufactured or supplied by SVF/NEXTEK Controls can be used in Intrinsically Safe systems.
NEXTEK Controls :: The Automation & Controls Product Group from SVF Flow Controls, Inc
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Russ Chomiak
Director of Sales
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Recently all of the sales people gathered for our annual sales meeting at our Home Office in La Palma, California.
As part of the agenda, we held several workshops including one driven at Customer Loyalty. From the collective inputs, our team submitted their overview where they offered the following initiatives to ensure that our customers are treated properly thus keeping them loyal:
- Processing zero errors
- Providing accuracy in order entry
- Submitting order acknowledgement
- Handling every request with velocity
- Eliminating bottlenecks
- Solving problems
- Being the consultative expert on applications
This first group relates to work processes where SVF needs to be service oriented in working with the details of our customer requirements.
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The following second set relates to customer intimacy:
- Treating customers as partners
- Being available as a regular presence
- Being empathetic
- Being honest
- Going the extra mile
- Being friendly under all circumstance
- Walking in your customers shoes
Our sales team is dedicated to these principles - we truly hope that it shows in every aspect of the work that we do together. We do however value your input whenever we do or do not exhibit these attributes. Let us know!
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Simplifying the ASME - BPE Standard for Surface Roughness
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SVF is a recognized leader in providing the pharmaceutical market with hygienic valves for a range of different applications. A common requirement is to provide our valves with various levels of surface finish to meet design specifications.
Surface finish is the nature of the surface as defined by three characteristics:
lay, waviness and surface roughness. Each manufacturing process produces a surface texture. The process is usually optimized to ensure that the resulting surface finish is usable. If necessary, additional processes will be added to modify the finish, i.e. mechanical or electro polishing
What is surface finish and how is it measured? Surface finish can be measured in two ways: Contact and non-contact methods. Contact method involves dragging a measurement stylus across the material's surface. These instruments are called profilometers. Profilometers provide the
Ra (Roughness average) of the surface's peaks and valleys. This is usually measured in µin. The most common non-contact methods is visual inspection with a borescope.
ASME BPE (American Society of Mechanical Engineers: Bioprocessing Equipment) calls out a Surface Designation to indicate the required
Ra for process contact surfaces. These surfaces are inside the valve flow path.
ASME also states that the surface finish is examined through one or more of the following procedures.
- Visual examination (direct or indirect with a borescope)
- Liquid penetrant testing
- Surface roughness measurement device (profilometer)
All of the
SVF high purity CleanFLOW Valves are tested with a profilometer for surface roughness as well as a visual inspection with a borescope to ensure compliance with ASME BPE.
Visit
www.asme.org fore more information on the Surface Finish standards of equipment for the pharmaceutical market.
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How a Profilometer Works
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The "Head Scratcher" -
Presidential Trivia!
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Scratch Your Heads Over This One!
This month we celebrate President's Day by honoring George Washington (as it was originally planned) along with ALL of our Presidents.
So that brings us to the Head Scratcher for February - How well do you really know our Presidential Facts?
Did You Know?...
- Jimmy Carter was the first and only President to go on record for sighting a UFO.
- Ulysses S. Grant was issued a $20 speeding ticket while riding his horse in Washington, D.C.
- Theodore Roosevelt was the first President to ride in a car
- Franklin D Roosevelt was the first President to ride in a plane
- John Quincy Adams enjoyed skinny dippin' in the Potomac River (Yikes!)
- President Harry Truman was also a Habberdasher
However weird those things might be - there was one President who lost the entire White House China Collection in a card game. Who was it?
- Hint... His first name begins with the letter "W".
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a. William Howard Taft
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b. Woodrow Wilson
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c. Warren G. Harding
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d. William McKinley
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Each month SVF will give a free canvas tote to the first 5 FlowRATE readers that correctly answer the "Head Scratcher" question through our website.
Click the button below or go to
www.SVF.net/response.php to submit your answer. The correct answer will be in our next FlowRATE.
GOOD LUCK!
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Last month's answer was: (a) Over 100 million pounds of Guacamole will be consumed during Super Bowl weekend
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Our Purpose Statement:
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"To serve the process control marketplace as a valued resource and advisor
on flow control applications."
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SVF Flow Controls | 5595 Fresca Drive, La Palma, CA 90623
1. 800. 783. 7836 | Fax: 562.802.3114 |
[email protected] |
www.SVF.net
Copyright ©2017 SVF Flow Controls | All Rights Reserved.
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